of temptation which shall come upon all the world. Rev. iii. 10. The smiting of the shepherd is often the scattering of the sheep: magistrates, ministers, masters of families, if these are, as they should be, shepherds to those under their charge, when any thing comes amiss to them, the whole flock suffers for it, and is endangered by it. But Christ encourages them with a promise that they shall rally again, shall return both to their duty and to their comfort (ver. 28),—After I am risen, I will gather you in from all the places whither you are scattered. Ezek. xxxiv. 12. I will go before you into Galilee, will see our friends, and enjoy one another there. He foretells that he would be denied, particularly by Peter. When they went out to go to the mount of Olives, we may suppose that they dropped Judas (he stole away from them), whereupon the rest began to think highly of themselves, that they stuck to their Master, when Judas quitted him. But Christ tells them, that though they should be kept by his grace from Judas's apostasy, yet they would have no reason to boast of their constancy. Though God keeps us from being as bad as the worst, yet we may well be ashamed to think that we are not better than we are. Peter is confident that he should not do so ill as the rest of the disciples (ver. 29),--Though all should be offended (all his brethren here present), yet will not I. He supposes himself not only stronger than others, but so much stronger, as to be able to receive the shock of a temptation, and bear up against it, all alone; to stand, though nobody stood by him. It is bred in the bone with us, to think well of ourselves, and trust to our own hearts. Christ tells him that he will do worse than any of them. They will all desert him, but he will deny him; not once, but thrice, and that presently,-This day, even this night, before the cock crow twice, thou wilt deny that ever thou hadst any knowledge of me, or acquaintance with me, as one ashamed and afraid to own me. He stands to his promise,-If I should die with thee, I will not deny thee; I will adhere to thee, though it cost me my life: and, no doubt, he thought as he said. Judas said nothing like this, when Christ told him he would betray him. He sinned by contrivance, Peter, by surprise; he devised the wickedness (Mic. ii. 1), Peter was overtaken in this fault. Gal. vi. 1. It was ill done of Peter to contradict his Master. If he had said, with fear and trembling, Lord, give me grace to keep me from denying thee, lead me not into this temptation, deliver me from this evil, it might have been prevented: but they were all thus confident; they who said, Lord, is it I? now said, It shall never be me. Being acquitted from their fear of betraying Christ, they were now secure. But he that thinks he stands, must learn to take heed lest he fall; and he that girdeth on the harness, let him not boast as though he had put it off. 32 And they came to a place which was named Gethsemane: and he saith to his disciples, Sit ye here, while I shall pray. 33 And he taketh with him Peter and James and John, and began to be sore amazed, and to be very heavy; 34 And saith unto them, "My soul is exceeding sorrowful unto death: tarry ye here, and watch. 35 And he went forward a little, and fell on the ground, and prayed that, if it were possible, the hour might pass from him. 36 And he said, 'Abba, Father, 'all things are possible unto thee; take away this cup from me: "nevertheless not what I will, but what thou wilt. 37 And he cometh, and findeth them sleeping, and saith unto Peter, Simon, sleepest thou? couldst not thou watch one hour? 38 Watch ye and pray, lest ye enter into temptation. The spirit truly is ready, but the flesh is weak. 39 And again he went away, and prayed, and spake the same words. 40 And when he returned, he found them asleep again, (for their eyes were heavy,) neither wist they what to answer him. 41 And he cometh the third time, and saith unto them, Sleep on now, and take your rest: it is enough, "the hour is come; behold, the Son of man is betrayed into the hands of sinners. 42 Rise up, let us go; lo, he that betrayeth me is at hand. X o Matt. xxvi. 36; Luke xxii. 39; John xviii. 1. p John xii. 27. q Rom. viii. 15; Gal. iv. 6. r Heb. v. 7. s John v. 30, vi. 38. t Rom. vii. 23; Gal. v. 17. u John xiii. 1. a Matt. xxvi. 46; John xviii. 1, 2. Christ is here entering upon his sufferings, and begins with those which were the sorest of all his sufferings those in his soul. Here we have him in his agony. This melancholy story we had in Matthew. This agony in soul was the wormwood and gall in the affliction and misery; and thereby it appeared that no sorrow was forced upon him, but that it was what he freely admitted. He retired for prayer,-Sit ye here (saith he to his disciples), while I go a little farther, and pray. He had lately prayed with them (John xvii.); and now he appoints them to withdraw while he goes to his Father upon an errand peculiar to himself. Our praying with our families will not excuse our neglect of secret worship. When Jacob entered into his agony, he first sent over all that he had, and was left alone, and then there wrestled a man with him (Gen. xxxii. 23, 24), though he had been at prayer before (ver. 9), it is likely, with his family. Even into that retirement he took with him Peter and James and John (ver. 33), three competent witnesses of this part of his humiliation; and though great spirits care not how few know any thing of their agonies, he was not ashamed that they should see. These three had boasted most of their ability and willingness to suffer with him; Peter here in this chapter, and James and John in chap. x. 39; and therefore Christ takes them to stand by, and see what a struggle he had with the bloody baptism and the bitter cup, to convince them that they knew not what they said. It is fit that they who are most confident, should be first tried, that they may be made sensible of their folly and weakness. There he was in a tremendous agitation (ver. 33),-He began to be sore amazed. The expression in the original bespeaks something like that horror of great darkness which fell upon Abraham (Gen. xv. 12); or, rather, something much worse, and more frightful. The terrors of God set themselves in array against him, and he allowed himself the actual and intense contemplation of them. Never was sorrow like unto his at that time; never any had such experience as he had from eternity of divine favours, and therefore, never any had, or could have, such a sense as he had of divine terrors. Yet there was not the least disorder or irregularity in this commotion of his spirits; his affections rose not tumultuously, but under direction, and as they were called up; for he had no corrupt nature to mix with them, as we have. If water have a sediment at the bottom, though it may be clear while it stands still, yet, when shaken, it grows muddy; so is it with our affections: but pure water in a clean glass, though ever so much stirred, continues clear; and so it was with Christ. Dr Lightfoot thinks it very probable that the devil did now appear to our Saviour in a visible shape, in his own shape and proper colour, to terrify and affright him, and to drive him from his hope in God (which he aimed at in persecuting Job, a type of Christ, to make him curse God, and die), and to deter him from the farther prosecution of his undertaking; whatever hindered him from that, he looked upon as coming from Satan. Matt. xvi. 23. When the devil had tempted him in the wilderness, it is said, He departed from him for a season (Luke iv. 13), intending another grapple with him, and in another way; finding that he could not by his flatteries allure him into sin, he would try by his terrors to affright him into it, and so make void his design. He made a sad complaint of this agitation. He said, My soul is exceeding sorrowful. 1. He was made sin for us, and therefore was thus sorrowful; he fully knew the malignity of the sins he was to suffer for; and having the highest degrees of love to God, who was offended by them, and of love to man, who was damaged and endangered by them, now that those were set in order before him, no marvel that his soul was exceeding sorrowful. Now he was made to serve with our sins, and was thus wearied with our iniquities. 2. He was made a curse for us; the curses of the law were transferred to him as our surety and representative, not as originally bound with us, but as bail to the action. And when his soul was thus exceeding sorrowful, he did, as it were, yield to them, and lie down under the load, until by his death, he had satisfied for sin, and so for ever abolished the curse. He now tasted death (as he is said to do, Heb. ii. 9), which is not an extenuating expression, as if he did but taste it-no, he drank up even the dregs of the cup; but it is rather aggravating-it did not go down all at once, but he tasted all the bitterness of it. This was that fear which the apostle speaks of (Heb. v. 7), a natural fear of pain and death, which it is natural to human nature to startle at. The consideration of Christ's sufferings in his soul, and his sorrows for us, should be of use to us. 1. To embitter our sins. Can we ever entertain a favourable, or so much as a slight, thought of sin, when we see what impression sin (though but imputed) made upon the Lord Jesus? Shall that sit light upon our souls, which sat so heavy upon his? Was Christ in such an agony for our sins, and shall we never be in an agony about them? How should we look upon him whom we have pressed, whom we have pierced, and mourn, and be in bitterness! It becomes us to be exceeding sorrowful for sin, because Christ was so, and never to make a mock at it. If Christ thus suffered for sin, let us arm ourselves with the same mind. 2. To sweeten our sorrows. If our souls be at any time exceeding sorrowful, through the afflictions of this present time, let us remember that our Master was so before us, and the disciple is not greater than his Lord. Why should we affect to drive away sorrow, when Christ for our sakes courted it, and submitted to it, and thereby not only took out the sting of it, and made it tolerable, but put virtue into it, and made it profitable (for by the sadness of the countenance, the heart is made better); nay, and put sweetness into it, and made it comfortable. Blessed Paul was sorrowful, and yet always rejoicing. If we be exceeding sorrowful, it is but unto death; that will be the period of all our sorrows, if Christ be ours; when the eyes are closed, all tears are wiped away from them. He ordered his disciples to keep with him, not because he needed their help, but because he would have them to look upon him and receive instruction. He said to them, Tarry ye here and watch. He had said to the other disciples nothing but, Sit ye here (ver. 32); but these three he bids to tarry and watch, as expecting more from them than from the rest. He addressed himself to God by prayer (ver. 35)—He fell on the ground, and prayed. It was but a little before this, that in prayer he lifted up his eyes (John xvii. 1); but here, being in an agony, he fell upon his face, accommodating himself to his present humiliation, and teaching us thus to abase ourselves before God; it becomes us to be low, when we come into the presence of the Most High. As man, he deprecated his sufferings, that, if it were possible, the hour might pass from him (ver. 35), This short but sharp affliction, that which I am now this hour to enter upon, let man's salvation be, if possible, accomplished without it. We have his very words (ver. 36), Abba, Father. The Syriac word is here retained, which Christ used, and which signifies Father, to intimate what an emphasis our Lord Jesus, in his sorrows, laid upon it, and would have us to lay. It is with an eye to this, that St Paul retains this word, putting it into the mouths of all that have the Spirit of adoption; they are taught to cry, "Abba, Father." Rom. viii. 15; Gal. iv. 6. Father, all things are possible to thee. Even that which we cannot expect to be done for us, we ought yet to believe that God is able to do; and, when we submit to his will, and refer ourselves to his wisdom and mercy, it must be with a believing acknowledgment of his power, that all things are possible to him. As Mediator, Christ acquiesced in the will of God concerning them,-Nevertheless, not what I will, but what thou wilt. I know the matter is settled, and cannot be altered, I must suffer and die, and I bid it welcome. He roused his disciples, who had fallen asleep while he was at prayer. Vers. 37, 38. He comes to look after them, since they did not look after him; and he finds them asleep-so little affected were they with his sorrows, his complaints, and prayers. This carelessness of theirs was a presage of their farther offence in deserting him; and it was an aggravation of it, that he had so lately commended them for continuing with him in his temptations, though they had not been without their faults. Was he so willing to make the best of them, and were they so indifferent in approving themselves to him? They had lately promised not to be offended in him; what! and yet mind him so little? He particularly upbraided Peter with his drowsiness,-Simon, sleepest thou? What! thou, my son? Thou that didst so positively promise thou wouldst not deny me, dost thou slight me thus? From thee I expected better things. Couldst thou not watch one hour? He did not require him to watch all night with him, only for one hour. It aggravates our faintness and short continuance in Christ's service, that he doth not over-task us, nor weary us with it. Isa. xliii. 23. He puts upon us no other burden than to hold fast till he comes (Rev. ii. 24, 25); and, behold, he comes quickly. Rev. iii. 11. As those whom Christ loves he rebukes when they do amiss, so those whom he rebukes he counsels and comforts. It was a very wise and faithful word of advice which Christ here gave to his disciples,- Watch and pray, lest ye enter into temptation. Ver. 38. It was bad to sleep when Christ was in his agony, but they were entering into farther temptation, and if they did not stir up themselves, and fetch in grace and strength from God by prayer, they would do worse; and so they did, when they all forsook him and fled. It was a very kind and tender excuse that Christ made for them,-The spirit truly is willing; I know it is, it is ready, it is forward; you would willingly keep awake, but you cannot. This may be taken as a reason for that exhortation, Watch and pray; because, though the spirit is willing (I grant it is you have sincerely resolved never to be offended in me), yet the flesh is weak, and if you do not watch and pray, and use the means of perse.. verance, you may be overcome, notwithstanding. The consideration of the weakness and infirmity of our flesh should engage and quicken us to prayer and watchfulness, when we are entering into temptation. Christ repeated his address to his Father (ver. 39),-He went again, and prayed, saying the same word, or matter, or business; he spoke to the same purport, and again the third time. This teaches us, that men ought always to pray, and not to faint. Luke xviii. 1. Though the answers to our prayers do not come quickly, yet we must renew our requests, and continue instant in prayer; for the vision is for an appointed time, and at the end it shall speak, and not lie. Hab. ii. 3. Paul, when he was buffeted by a messenger of Satan, besought the Lord thrice, as Christ did here, before he obtained an answer of peace. 2 Cor. xii. 7, 8. A little before this, when Christ, in the trouble of his soul, prayed, "Father, glorify thy name," he had an immediate answer by a voice from heaven, "I have both glorified it, and I will glorify it yet again;" but now he must come a second and a third time, for the visits of God's grace, in answer to prayer, come sooner or later, according to the pleasure of his will, that we may be kept depending. He repeated also his visits to his disciples. Thus he gave a specimen of his continued care for his Church on earth, even when it is half asleep, and not duly concerned for itself, while he ever lives, making intercession with his Father in heaven. See how, as became a Mediator, he passes and repasses between both. He came the second time to his disciples, and found them asleep again. Ver. 40. See how the infirmities of Christ's disciples return upon them, notwithstanding their resistance; and what clogs those bodies of ours are to our souls, which should make us long for that blessed state in which they shall be no more our encumbrance. This second time he spoke to them as before, but they wist not what to answer him; they were ashamed of their drowsiness, and had nothing to say in excuse for it. Or, they were so overpowered with it, that, like men between sleeping and waking, they knew not where they were, or what they said. But, the third time, they were bid to sleep if they would (ver. 41)-Sleep on now, and take your rest. I have no more occasion for your watching, you may sleep if you will, for me. It is enough (we had not that word in Matthew)-you have had warning enough to keep awake, and would not take it; and now you shall see what little reason you have to be secure. I discharge you from any farther attendance-so some understand it. Now the hour is come in which I knew you would all forsake me-even take your course; as he said to Judas, "What thou doest, do quickly." The Son of man is now betrayed into the hands of sinners, the chief priests and elders; those worst of sinners, because they made a profession of sanctity. Come, rise up, do not lie dozing there. Let us go and meet the enemy; for, lo, he that betrayeth me is at hand, and I must not now think of making an escape. When we see trouble at the door, we are concerned to stir up ourselves to get ready for it. 43 ¶'And immediately, while he yet spake, cometh Judas, one of the twelve, and with him a great multitude with swords and staves, from the chief priests and the scribes and the elders. 44 And he that betrayed him had given them a token, saying, Whomsoever I shall kiss, that same is he; take him, and lead him away safely. 45 And as soon as he was come, he goeth straightway to him, and saith, Master, master; and kissed him. 46 And they laid their hands on him, and took him. 47 And one of them that stood by drew a sword, and smote a servant of the high priest, and cut off his ear. 48 And Jesus answered and said unto them, Are ye come out, as against a thief, with swords and with staves to take me? 49 I was daily with you in the temple teaching, and ye took me not: but the scriptures must be fulfilled. 50 And they all forsook him, and fled. 51 And there followed him a certain young man, having a linen cloth cast about his naked body; and the young men laid hold on him: 52 And he left the linen cloth, and fled from them naked. y Matt. xxvi. 47; Luke xxii. 47; John xviii. 3. a Psal. xxii. 6; Isa. liii. 7; We have here the seizing of our Lord Jesus by the officers of the chief priests. This was what his enemies had long aimed at, they had often sent to take him; but he had escaped out of their hands, because his hour was not come, nor could they now have taken him, had he not freely surrendered himself. He began first to suffer in his soul, but afterward suffered in his body, that he might satisfy for sin, which begins in the heart, but afterward makes the members of the body instruments of unrighteousness. A band of rude miscreants were employed to take our Lord Jesus, and make him a prisoner-a great multitude with swords and staves. There is no wickedness so black, no villany so horrid, but there may be found among the children of men fit tools to be made use of, that will not scruple to be employed; so miserably depraved and vitiated is mankind. At the head of this rabble is Judas, one of the twelve, one of those that had been many years intimately conversant with our Lord Jesus, had prophesied in his name, and in his name cast out devils, and yet betrayed him. It is no new thing for a very fair, plausible profession to end in a shameful and fatal apostasy. How art thou fallen, O Lucifer! Men of no less figure than the cnref priests and the scribes and the elders, sent them, and set them on work; who pretended to expect the Messiah, and to be ready to welcome him; and yet, when he is come, and has given undeniable proofs that it is he that should come-because he doth not make court to them, nor countenance and support their pomp and grandeur-because he appears not as a temporal prince, but sets up a spiritual kingdom, and preaches repentance, reformation, and holy life, and directs men's thoughts and affections, and aims, to another world-they set themselves against him, and, without giving the credentials he produces an impartial examination, resolve to run him down. Judas betrayed him with a kiss; abusing the freedom Christ used to allow his disciples of kissing his cheek at their return, when they had been any time absent. He called him, Master, Master, and kissed him; he said, Rabbi, Rabbi, as if he had been now more respectful to him than ever. He bid them take him, and lead him away safely. Some think that he spoke this ironically, knowing that they could not secure him unless he pleased; that this Samson could break their bonds asunder as threads of tow, and make his escape, and then he should get the money, and Christ the honour, and no harm done; and I should think so too, but that Satan was entered into him, so that the worst and most malicious intention of this action is not too black to be supposed. Nay, he had often heard his Master say, that, being betrayed, he should be crucified, and had no reason to think otherwise. They arrested him, and made him their prisoner (ver. 46),―They laid their hands on him, rude and violent hands, and took him into custody; triumphing, it is likely, that they had done that which had been often before attempted in vain. Peter laid about him in defence of his Master, and wounded one of the assailaust; being for the present mindful of his promise, to venture his life with his Master. He was one of them that stood by, of them that were with him (so the word signifies), of those three disciples that were with him in the garden; he drew a sword, and aimed, it is likely, to cut off the head, but missed his blow, and only cut off the ear, of a servant of the high priest. Ver. 47. It is easier to fight for Christ, than to die for him; but Christ's good soldiers overcome, not by taking away other people's lives, but by laying down their own. Rev. xii. 11. Christ argues with them that had seized him, and shows them the absurdity of their proceedings against him. That they came out against him as against a thief, whereas he was innocent of any crime; he taught daily in the temple, and if he had any wicked design, there it would some time or other have been discovered; nay, these officers of the chief priests, being retainers to the temple, may be supposed to have heard his sermons there (I was with you in the temple); and had he not taught them excellent doctrine, even his enemies themselves being judges? Were not all the words of his mouth in righteousness? Was there any thing forward or perverse in them? Prov. viii. 8. By his fruits he was known to be a good tree; why then did they come out against him as a thief? That they came to take him thus privately, whereas he was neither ashamed nor afraid to appear publicly in the temple. He was none of those evil-doers that hate the light, neither come to the light. John iii. 20. If their masters had any thing to say to him, they might meet him any day in the temple, where he was ready to answer all challenges, all charges; and there they might do as they pleased with him, for the priests had the custody of the temple, and the command of the guards about it; but to come upon him thus at midnight, and in the place of his retirement, was base and cowardly. This was to do as David's enemy, that sat in the lurking-places of the villages, to murder the innocent. Psal. x. 8. But this was not all. They came with swords and staves, as if he had been in arms against the government, and must have its officers raised to reduce him. There was no occasion for those weapons; but they made this ado, in order to secure themselves from the rage of some; they came armed, because they feared the people; but thus were they in great fear when no fear was. Psal. liii. 5. It was also in order to expose him to the rage of others. By coming with swords and staves to take him, they represented him to the people (who are apt to take impressions this way) as a dangerous, turbulent man, and so endeavoured to incense them against him, and make them cry out, Crucify him, crucify him,-having no other way to gain their point. He reconciled himself to all this injurious, ignominious treatment, by referring himself to the Old Testament predictions of the Messiah. I am hardly used, but I submit, for the Scriptures must be fulfilled. Ver. 49. See here what a regard Christ had to the Scriptures; he would bear any thing rather than that the least jot or tittle of the Word of God should fall to the ground; and as he had an eye to them in his sufferings, so he has in his glory; for what is Christ doing in the government of the world, but fulfilling the Scriptures? See what use we are to make of the Old Testament; we |